With the ongoing confusion on the terminology of the underwater remote operated vehicles, also known as ROV comapnies and on underwater auto vehicles, also known as AUVs, it has become clear that they could be classified as underwater drones. These underwater drones are different from the aerial drones that we see in our daily lives.
The main purpose of these drones is to serve in the oil and mining industries that go on underwater. This underwater drone technology is indeed serving humanity to fulfill its supplies. They help in the maintenance and research of the underwater pipelines and machines.
We know more about outer space than we know about our oceans.
With the development of these autonomous underwater vehicles, we are discovering our oceans with great precision. We can send human-crewed vehicles into the deep sea, but it is far more dangerous to human beings to get this low in the water.
First, due to the immense pressure on them, if anything bad happens, then things get-go from heaven to hell in the blink of the eye. Second, due to this much pressure, the nitrogen starts to get mixed in the blood, which can cause serious problems if not taken care of properly. Autonomous underwater vehicles come for the rescue here.
They can not only do the chores that need to be done, but you can also see what is going on in full HD. With the advancement in technology, their capabilities are increasing exponentially. Currently, they are mostly used by offshore gas companies for the geo-mapping and repairing works in the pipelines and wells.
If you think how much use they can be, you should know that in the year 2010, an oil spill broke out in the Gulf of Mexico. Eleven workers lost their lives in this disaster. It continued for 87 days, and approximately 4.9 million barrels of oil were spilled into the gulf.
The cause for the disaster was a hole in the pipelines, which was at a depth of 1600 meters. That hole was successfully fixed with the help of these underwater drones. Now imagine what could be the scenario if there were no drones to fix the problem.
Taking lessons from the gulf disaster engineering department is working day and night to make them more autonomous. Still connected with a cable to the operator, they can only go in a specific area under the ship. They are developing AUVs that can perform more complex functions in the sea and can also cruise underwater.
Humans are expanding underwater deeper and deeper with the increasing cost, safety, environmental regulations, and human resource constraints. The dependency of humans on these underwater vehicles is increasing daily. These drones will also facilitate the research underwater, which could help us understand our earth and also find new sources of energy.
These autonomous underwater vehicles have proven their worth with time.
With the human expansion underwater in search of fossil fuels and new sources of energy, these drones will be in demand forever. But these need to be upgraded as with the current technology; they can only do some basic tasks that do just under the ship they are being operated from.
As they are connected with a cable to the operator, there are chances that it can be damaged, which could lead to losing the drone and the valuable data. The main problem is the cable. But I believe that humans will overcome this problem like they do every time.